Spirits of the Seasons
by Ztarlight
Summary: Formerly titled /Leaves/. 12/25 -New chapter added; more stuff 'bout Gir. ^-^ Second chapter dedicated to GirChic.
1. Leaves!

(Hiya, everybody! I know that this wasn't on my plans for the fall, but I had a fire drill at skool today, and I was in one of those so-tired-I'm-hyper kind  
of moods. So on the way back inside, I started kicking through the leaves and said to myself, "Now wouldn't it be cute if Gir could play in the leaves."  
Disclaimer applies, blady-blady-blah and all that other legal stuffs. On with the ficcie!!)  
  
  
  
The Spirits of the Seasons  
Chapter One: Leaves!  
  
  
Zim stared at the trees with horror.  
  
(No... it can't be... I thought I had a chance!)  
  
But, it was.  
  
The leaves had changed color.  
  
"Ugh... the only other living green thing on this planet that doesn't disgust me has to go off and die!" Zim glared at the tree.  
  
Gir toddled up. "Aww... Don't be sad Master. I'm green, and I don't disgust you."  
  
"No, Gir. It's just your habits that gross me out." Zim sighed. "What does this... leaf changing mean? At first I thought I could do something, but if the  
trees are no longer green, then what does it mean for me?" Zim grabbed Gir's collar and flew to towards the house. "C'mon, Gir! I must investigate   
this Earthly phenonomena."  
  
"Okay!" The tiny andriod chirped. "Uh, Master? What's a 'fuh-nom-in-a' ?"  
  
  
  
Zim quietly thought as the computer scrolled down articles about "fall".  
  
"So... 'leaves contain several types of pigments, but until fall, only... 'klor-uh-fill' is present to the human eye'. " Zim scoffed. "I don't have human   
eyes and yet it these 'pigments' were still invisible to my optic sensors!!" The Irken growled softly. "They have booby-trapped their plants along with  
their sun, have they? Well, they will be sure to face my doom!!"  
  
Gir flushed himself into the lab. "Master, can I have some money for cupcakes?"  
  
Not hearing Gir, Zim continued to ramble. "But I don't have these... pig-ments in my skin... or, do I?"  
  
Gir grew excited. "Pigs? Where?!" He jumped onto Zim's head.  
  
"Ahh!" Zim yelped in surprise. He pried Gir off his antennae and threw him across the lab into a giant, pink puff. "The pigs are over *there*, Gir.   
Now get out of the lab!"  
  
Gir gave the sad eyes. "Aww, can I PLEEEEEEEEEASE stay with you and the piggies?"  
  
Zim clenched his fist. He hated when Gir gave that face... it always made him weak. Finally he sighed in defeat. "Oh, fine. But if you're going to   
play down here, I want you quiet and out of my way. If you do that for me, we will go get your... cupcakes. Okay?"  
  
Gir nodded happily and dove into the pig-pile.   
  
Zim went back to his research. "I don't know how he eats those things..." He scrolled down another article. " 'These leaves change depending on   
the individual pigment in the leaf, either to a yellow, red, or orange'. " He shuddered at the thought of him with orange skin. "And how will I explain  
*that* to the humans?" Zim went upstairs to take a break from trying to discover a reversal process.  
  
Gir, having a short enough attention span as it was, soon became bored with a pink pig and went in search of paint. He came across the articles  
that Zim had looked up for research. Zim had unknowingly left the computer on, and with Gir around, it wasn't always a smart thing to do.   
Fortunately for our Irken, Gir wasn't interested with what was on the console, but rather the screen.  
  
Triangles of splendid colour danced across the screen in a display of joy and beauty. From what Gir could determine, these wondrous creations  
came from trees. "Like the one Master was lookin' at..." Donning his disguise, Gir grabbed a pig and announced he was going for a walk. Then  
he left.  
  
Gir walked slowly down the winding avenues, carefully seeking out the right tree. After a short while of being disapointed, he found himself in the  
sity park. It was here that he found the most glorious autumn pasttime of them all:  
  
Jumping in the leaves.  
  
He watched in extreme facination as several adults rounded up the leaves in huge piles with giant forks, then grabbed their kids and soared high  
into the air... to fall into a soft pile of brown and gold, sending little fragments of the tree-babies everywhere.  
  
Gir squeezed his pig a little tighter and approached the group, squeaking lightly as he stepped. This noise was enough to alert the family that they  
had a visitor.  
  
A little girl, about the age of eight, ran up to Gir. "Aww... what a cute little puppy!"  
  
A boy about ten years old came up beside the girl. "Can we keep him, Mommy?"  
  
Another person walked over to Gir. "No, honey. He belongs to someone already."  
  
"Darn." The boy looked away. Then he brightened. "Can he play in the leaves with us?"  
  
Gir squealed happily at this suggestion. The girl smiled. "It's like he can understand us... c'mon, puppy!" She picked up Gir and threw herself at the  
leaf pile.  
  
Several hours of uninterupted fun erupted from this little sport. Gir had never found something so exciting. Not only was he having a blast, he could  
introduce a new friend to Pig!  
  
This girl, as he figured out, was named Sarah. He brother was called Robby, and the other two humans were "Mom" and "Dad". (Wow...) Gir   
thought. (Four new friends for me and Pig in one day! Too bad Master couldn't be here...) He was a bit skeptical of Robby, only because Robby   
had tried to take Pig, unaware of how special he was to Gir.  
  
Happily, Sarah seemed to understand how important Pig was, and got him back. Gir got the impression that she liked pigs... that was a good thing.  
  
Sadly, as all good things come to an end, Sarah and her family had to leave for home. At first Gir thought it was a game, but Sarah looked so sad,  
and games make people happy, right? So before she left, Gir gave Sarah a looooooooooong, squeaky hug, and watched her walk away to her  
blue minivan.  
  
As she was walking, Sarah felt something light tap her foot. She sighed and turned around. "I told you, Puppy, I can't---"  
  
But Gir was nowhere in sight.  
  
Instead, there was a round, pinkish object, with a little marking on it. Awed, Sarah leaned over and picked it up. "It's Pig..."  
  
Upon closer investigation, she could see that the mark was really a tiny pawprint, and if she didn't know any better, she'd say it was shaped like a   
heart... 


	2. Lights!

(This idea didn't really come to me until I read a fic by GirChic entitled "HOW THE S.I.R. STOLE CHRISTMAS - FROM THE TOWN!". In such a case I  
dedicate it to her. I dunno what I'm going to do with this as of right now; hopefully you'll like it!)  
  
GirChic: I get a fic dedicated to me!!  
  
Ztarlight: Wha---?! Where's you come from?  
  
GirChic: Over there. ::points to radiator::  
  
Ztarlight: ::sighs:: Well, as you know by now, I don---  
  
GirChic: Can I say it? HuhhuhcanIcanIpleasepleasepleaselemmesayit!!!  
  
Ztarlight: Okay.  
  
GirChic: YAY! As you know by now, Ztarlight doesn't own IZ. Neither does The Slayer, who I usually do disclaimers for, but she's not here right now.  
  
The Slayer: Says who?  
  
Ztarlight: Oh, boy...  
  
  
  
The Spirits of the Seasons  
Chapter Two: Lights!  
  
  
"But Master..."  
  
"For the last time Gir, no!"  
  
"Oh fine..."  
  
Zim frowned at his S.I.R. unit and sighed. "What is it about this human holiday that appeals to you so much?"  
  
Gir shook his head. "You wouldn't understand, Master."  
  
"Me? The Great Zim? Not understand?! WHERE would you get an idea like *that*?"  
  
Gir gazed dreamily out the window. "It's a long story..."  
  
"Oh." Zim fell silent. "I guess it's just as well then. I don't have time for a story. I have work to do." And with that he disappeared down the toilet.  
  
Gir sighed. "Fine then. I don't need your permission to be happy." The tiny andriod fetched his green puppy disguise and headed out the door.  
  
  
  
"Why doesn't he like the holidays?"  
  
Gir wondered this single thought aloud over and over again. December - especially the last three weeks - were a time of peace and a time to   
celebrate. And right now, during the evening of Christmas, the world was at its peak. Every person passing by had a smile on their faces. Several  
humans grouped together to sing carols, ranging from decking hallways with jolly holly to quiet evenings, and from winter wonderlands to a reindeer   
with a lightbulb for a nose! Gir liked that idea. "I want a lightbulb nose that gloes like a lightbulb!"  
  
But what awed Gir most of all was the lights.  
  
Down one street, each house shone in a bright display of colour, lighting up the frosty air in hues of white, blue, or even rainbow swirls. Vividly coloured  
statues of Rudolph, Santa Claus, and Frosty the Snowman greeted the onlookers with shining eyes and cheerful smiles. Yet no ones eyes shone more   
than Gir's did.  
  
Down another street, the setup was twice as brilliant as the first road. Flashing decorations, twinkling stars, and joyous strings of light dressed the   
houses up against the dark evening cky. That all quickly changed, as clouds flew in overhead and the Heavens released the purest form of falling  
wonder - snow.  
  
The snow fell down, lightly but fast, dusting the streets, sidewalks, and people with a light white blanket. Gir smiled and danced in the streetlight,  
basking in the glow all around.  
  
(Maybe someday, Master will understand what the Lights are really like,) he thought as he spun in the glow of the season, (But for now, the night   
belongs to me.)  
  
  
~*FIN*~  
  
Ztarlight: Hmm... a bit shorter than I had intended, but I think it turned out okay!  
  
GirChic: I like it!! It's dedicated to meeeeeee!!  
  
Ztarlight: So, Slayer, how did *you* get in here?  
  
The Slayer: The door.  
  
GirChic: I came in through the hot place!!  
  
Ztarlight: Well, I hope that you all enjoyed that little holiday excerpt. I think the reason The Slayer and GirChic are here is because my muse is asleep.  
Trust me, that IS a good thing. I'll be updating this periodically, as the seasons pass, so... watch for it!... I guess...  
  
GirChic: AND DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW!!  
  
Ztarlight: Yeah, that too.... please? 


End file.
